I have seen the power of God in changing my life. I was known as an habitual criminal, a career criminal. Between 1979 and 1993, I was charged with the following: first degree arson, aggravated motor vehicle theft, criminal mischief, harassment, theft, trespassing, second degree burglary, attempted arson, forgery, eluding, menacing, theft by receiving, possession […]
In June 1998, two nineteen-year-old girls in a lesbian relationship, and both Satanists, viciously attacked without provocation, an elderly woman at Noosa, almost killing her. The crime received national publicity. The leader, Sarah Bird, was sentenced to 18 years in jail. Her accomplice was sentenced to nine years in jail. Four months later, October 1998, […]
What are prison inmates generally like? The average inmate is under 25 years of age. About 96% are men, and 3 or 4% are women. Many come from broken homes, or a home that had little love or discipline. However, some come from good homes, and some even come from good solid Christian homes. Most […]
The singing has already started. The Christians sit comfortably in their usual spots. As they sing, they glance down at the hymnbook every few lines. Before they get to the last line, they close the book and then bow their heads, anticipating the opening prayer. In the back corner a young man slips in. His […]
WM: Introduce yourself briefly and tell what you do for your job. TR: My name is Tom Rodrigues. I’m a motorcycle officer in a traffic unit for the city of Hayward, California. I have been a police officer with the city for twenty-five years. My wife Mary and I have three daughters: Sarah (18), Allison […]
While he was in prison, John the Baptist was depressed by doubts concerning Jesus being the Messiah. Jesus told His disciples that they should tell Him of the miracles they had seen and that, “the poor have the gospel preached to them” (Mt. 11:5, nkjv). Many times it is the poor that are most receptive […]
Some years ago when visiting the home of a new couple that had come to our assembly, one of the questions that was asked was, “What kind of outreach do you have beyond your own assembly?” Sadly, we had to say we had no significant program to reach beyond our own members. We began to […]
Don’t confuse me with a gardener. I plant flowers each year but I don’t read garden catalogs in February, longing for the moment when the snow melts enough to see the soil. I like flowers as art, the bold interplay of colors, the drama of the unfolding bud–flowers as ideas, blooming in my mind, not […]
In 2 Kings 6, Israel’s inveterate enemy, the king of Syria, had planned by wicked stealth to destroy them. But Elisha, God’s prophet, forewarned Israel’s king of the evil devices of his adversary so that the nation was delivered. Then Elisha seemed to retire into the obscurity of one of those many seasons of quiet […]